New history of horses and humans in American West | Top 10

+ Trump indictment challenges campaign; take our news quiz! US Edition - Today's top story: 40 years ago 'A Nation at Risk' warned of a 'rising tide of mediocrity' in US schools – has anything changed? [View in browser]( US Edition | 2 April 2023 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Happy Sunday. Welcome to the best of The Conversation. Just published: - [Prosecuting a president is divisive and sometimes destabilizing – here’s why many countries do it anyway]( - [Trump’s indictment stretches US legal system in new ways – a former prosecutor explains 4 key points to understand]( For the first time in U.S. history, an American president has been charged with a crime – a milestone for our democracy. Read the just published stories above for insights on how Trump’s criminal charges may impact the U.S. legal system and how prosecuting leaders has affected countries around the world. Follow our [ongoing coverage of this important story](. And, since today is Sunday, treat yourself by reading James Rose, director of the Institute for Smart Structures at the University of Tennessee, who explains how emerging technology may change how America builds homes. It’s the kind of story that gives you [a glimpse into how the future might look](. Later this week, we’ll bring you stories about how to regulate artificial intelligence, a sabertooth cat skull found in Iowa and why slugs are so slow. Emily Costello Managing Editor Today's newsletter supported by [readers like you.]( Readers' picks Academic gains made over the past four decades have begun to erode. Troy Aossey/The Image Bank via Getty Images [40 years ago ‘A Nation at Risk’ warned of a ‘rising tide of mediocrity’ in US schools – has anything changed?]( Morgan Polikoff, University of Southern California Polarization among the public and politicians threatens to undermine educational progress made over the past few decades. - [Trump indictment won’t keep him from presidential race, but will make his reelection bid much harder]( Stefanie Lindquist, Arizona State University With a grand jury indictment of former President and current presidential candidate Donald Trump, a legal scholar explores what the law says about the consequences of such an unprecedented act. - [How do superconductors work? A physicist explains what it means to have resistance-free electricity]( Mishkat Bhattacharya, Rochester Institute of Technology Superconductors are materials that can transmit electricity without any resistance. Researchers are getting closer to creating superconducting materials that can function in everyday life. - [Ancient DNA is restoring the origin story of the Swahili people of the East African coast]( Chapurukha Kusimba, University of South Florida; David Reich, Harvard University The first ancient DNA sequences from peoples of the medieval Swahili civilization push aside colonialist stories and reveal genetic connections from the past. - [Behind the Latter-day Saint church’s vast wealth are two centuries of financial hits and misses]( Benjamin Park, Sam Houston State University Joseph Smith encouraged early Latter-day Saints to pool their resources. Two centuries later, one of the results is an investment portfolio estimated at $100 billion. Editors' picks Horses are an active part of life for the Lakota and many other Plains nations today. Jacquelyn Córdova/Northern Vision Productions [Archaeology and genomics together with Indigenous knowledge revise the human-horse story in the American West]( William Taylor, University of Colorado Boulder; Yvette Running Horse Collin, Université de Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier European colonists chronicled their version of how Indigenous peoples lived with horses. New collaborative research adds scientific detail to Indigenous narratives that tell a different story. - [3D printing promises to transform architecture forever – and create forms that blow today’s buildings out of the water]( James Rose, University of Tennessee Not since the adoption of the steel frame has there been a development with as much potential to transform the way buildings are conceived and constructed. - [SVB’s newfangled failure fits a century-old pattern of bank runs, with a social media twist]( Rodney Ramcharan, University of Southern California Crises fueled by bank runs, starting with the Great Depression, have had something in common: Unexpected changes spur bank failures, followed by general panic and then large-scale economic distress. - [When it comes to explaining elections in Congress, gerrymandering is overrated]( Charles R. Hunt, Boise State University A loud chorus of Democrats – and some Republicans, too – has for years claimed gerrymandering is costing their party seats in Congress. Is it true? - [Gender-affirming care has a long history in the US – and not just for transgender people]( G. Samantha Rosenthal, Roanoke College The first transgender medical clinic opened in the US in the 1960s. But cisgender and intersex children began receiving similar treatments even earlier – often without their consent. News Quiz 🧠- [The Conversation U.S. weekly news quiz]( Test your reading with a weekly quiz drawn from some of our favorite stories. Questions this week on baseball, over-the-counter drugs, architecture and labor history. Like this newsletter? You might be interested in our other weekly emails: [Science Editors' Picks]( • [This Week in Religion]( • [Politics Weekly]( About The Conversation: We're a nonprofit news organization dedicated to [helping academic experts share ideas with the public](. 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